mrbouchez
@wcnet.org
|  Sprint EVDO - Warcraft user Home Network
I recently got Sprint service for home. I'm in a rural area so cable and DSL are out of the question. I mainly use the internet for games, World of Warcraft, with some surfing and Email.
I was glad to hear that Sprint offered service as my only other options were DTN Speednet which didn't have a very good record and Wildblue/Hugesnet which also didn't have very good reviews and have very bad latency.
First, here is where I stand now. I'm less than 2 miles from the tower. There is a large stand of trees between me and the tower. I get a decent signal now, 4 bars/80% signal most of the time but I still have a relatively high latency. Latency runs from 800-1500ms in game. I have 2 computers that will be connecting to WoW at the same time.
I'm looking to reduce the latency of my EVDO connection and have been doing some research. I have a few questions for all of you.
1. Tunnelers. Programs like PingFU from Artofping.com. Do they help with latency from this type of cell connection?
2. Antennas. I've purchased a Wilson antenna but didn't see much improvement. Is this the right type of antenna? Does the position of the antenna matter? If I elevate the antenna at what point will the length of coax cable hurt my connection?
3. Amps. Some posts say don't bother, others say they are great. What about hardware vs. software driven amps?
4. Repeaters. Are these different from amps? Will adding one improve my latency?
Thanks in advance to those who bother to post a reply. |
|
Jim_in_VA
join:2004-07-11
Cobbs Creek, VA | We need a little more info. What modem are you using, what is your RSSI (dBm) signal level? At less than two miles from the tower you likely don't need an amp. What type of Wilson antenna?
--
* evdotips.blogspot.com * |
|
netwire
Premium
join:2001-04-27
Mooresboro, NC
 ·RoadRunner Cable
 ·Millenicom
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
 ·Vonage
 ·WildBlue
| reply to mrbouchez
As for question number 1, stay away from it. That can get your account banned from WOW and it's more a waste of money than anything else.
Your ping is higher on wow than you will see it on other games or speed test because wow seems to have higher latency for some unknown reason - I myself am a WOW player on SMBB.
--
World of Warcraft - My anti-drug.
|
|
mrbouchez
@wcnet.org
| reply to mrbouchez
I connect using a Sierra Wireless 597 Compass, the connection type says RAS. I presently get -82 dBm at best, sometimes as bad as -96 or a little more. The best I've been able to get my signal is 80% and it usually runs at that rate. If I can get the signal to float around 100% wouldn't that reduce my latency?
I'm less than 2 miles from the tower, with a little help shouldn't that full 100% signal be possible?
What is causing the signal to dip down to 40% and back up? Shouldn't it mostly stay at a constant level? |
|
mrbouchez
join:2008-06-13
Payne, OH
| I will have a laptop to use this weekend for testing. I just want to get this strait so that I'm checking what I need to check to help get this resolved.
I need to load WoW then drive to the tower while logged in to see what kind of results I get closer to the tower. I need to check the connection type, signal strength, and watch the in game latency.
Any other suggestions? |
|
netwire
Premium
join:2001-04-27
Mooresboro, NC
·RoadRunner Cable
·Millenicom
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
·Vonage
·WildBlue
| reply to mrbouchez
With that signal you should not have such a problem with latency. Some things you should do is; read the post here on this forum about tweaking and home agents (hint: click links above). Also make sure you have the latest anti-virus updates for your anti-virus program, and make sure it had performed a full scan recently. You should also use an anti-spyware application to make sure you don't have any pesky spyware. I would expect that you see improvements after tweaking, and perhaps a home agent change.
--
World of Warcraft - My anti-drug.
|
|
mrbouchez
join:2008-06-13
Payne, OH
| reply to mrbouchez
I read your post on High latency and hangs on WoW, Netwire, but I didn't understand what all of that report stuff is about. I'm as newb as they come when dealing with cell internet. I'm not even sure what type of connection I have here, EVDO or RTT, and now that I have the router I'm not even sure how to monitor my signal.
I understand what your saying about spyware ect. That could very well be the case, mine ran out in march and I haven't updated it yet.
I now have both computers connecting and both of our latency readings were in the 1500ms range, 2000+ms was not uncommon. I have the patients of Job, I'll try anything that anyone suggests within reason (a guildmate suggested I sell the house and move where I can get DSL/Cable LOL) to improve my connection. |
|
hitman_001
Premium
join:2006-11-20
Laredo, TX | With ping times that high.. your running on 1xrtt. Even on bad days with evdo my latency doesnt crawl over 200 on EQ. |
|
Jim_in_VA
join:2004-07-11
Cobbs Creek, VA
·Sprint Mobile Broa..
·Millenicom
| reply to mrbouchez
Since you are new to EVDO you may want to get an idea what things the experienced posters here are talking about. May I suggest you peruse my blog at »evdotips.blogspot.com/, it may help with the issues you are having...no obligation of course. |
|
mrbouchez
join:2008-06-13
Payne, OH
| reply to mrbouchez
After doing some research I'm sure I only have an 1xRTT connection, though Sprint led me to believe this was a broadband connection. Not much surprise there.
Now that I know what I'm working with I can start researching what can be done to improve on the connection, believe me there is plenty of room for improvement.
@Jim_in_VA
Next stop is your Blog! |
|
mrbouchez
join:2008-06-13
Payne, OH
| reply to mrbouchez
I've been turning up a lot of info about Home Agents. Would changing these possibly help in my transfer rate and latency? I also found a post from a Sprint employee who said that Rev A should be widespread by 1st quarter of 08 in northern (Fort Wayne)Indiana which is fairly close to me.
My worst enemy is the lack of population where we live, thats the single biggest reason that broadband choices are so limited here. If my house was 1.5 west of where it is now I could be on DSL... 
@Jim_in_VA
I looked over your blog. Ive got a Willson Trucker Omni antenna that I thought would help collect a better signal. After looking at your blog I think a Yagi would work better.
I'm in zip code 45880, Payne Oh. You can see the Sprint tower that I'm connecting with. I see that Norfolk Southern railroad has several of their towers in the area, is that going to create noise for me or do they use a different frequency? With a Yagi I could just point to the tower and isolate the signal I'm looking for and elevation is less of a concern right?
@netwire
I've checked for spyware but nothing turned up. I don't do much downloading other than software updates and plugins, I stay away from any Email if I don't know the sender personally. I'm pretty picky about what I download and consider myself fairly safe about my security. |
|
mrbouchez
join:2008-06-13
Payne, OH
| reply to mrbouchez
I did some thinking this weekend about traffic. I'm on a residential/personal account so when free nights start around 7pm won't my bandwidth spike?
Would I see better service on a business account? In the area I'm in there wouldn't be a large number of businesses creating traffic in the evenings. |
|
mrbouchez
join:2008-06-13
Payne, OH | reply to mrbouchez
Doing some research I've found that Centennial Wireless offers GSM wireless in my area. Any opinion on weither this would be a better connection than what I get from Sprint? |
|
